Images have popped up on social media of what are claimed to be a PlayStation 5 development kit (devkit) and the new DualShock 5 controller.

The pictures are certainly convincing enough but, like all such things, there is more than an air of suspicion when it comes to games hardware shown long before release. Especially anything from PlayStation.

If real, the PS5 devkit doesn't give many clues away anyway. A devkit is a device designed specifically to give developers and studios access to core internal hardware and features and rarely, if ever, looks anything like a full production model.

Are leaked PS5 devkit and DualShock 5 controller real or fake image 2
@Supersonic4k

The DualShock 5 controller shown in pictures posted by Twitter users @Tidux and @Supersonic4k is slightly more interesting though.

It looks strangely chunky for a PlayStation gamepad. but instead of a touchpanel at the top, it allegedly sports a touchscreen. This seems to give access to chat functions in one of the images.

Whether the pics are real or not, that does make sense considering the way social gaming is going.

A small, integrated touchscreen would be a logical next step for a next-gen controller. We have issues about power consumption, considering battery life is already an issue with the DualShock 4, but an OLED panel of that size wouldn't be a major drain. A display like that could also offer further benefits beyond social interaction, so wouldn't be surprised if Sony was considering it.

At present though, the biggest indication on whether these pics show an actual PS5 devkit and controller or not comes from Kotaku's Jason Schreier, who is well connected in the industry. He posted on ResetEra that they are fake: "Asked a couple of people who would know. They both said it's fake," he wrote.

So, until we hear otherwise or see more images pop up, you need to take these with a healthy dose of sodium chloride.